Mayor George Flaggs Jr. has a vision of what Vicksburg could look like and outlined that course this week with a $55 million 10-year capital improvement project that would be funded by a proposed one-cent sales tax to pay for much needed projects.

Flaggs said the one-cent tax is expected to generate $3.9 million a year and pay off the $55 million bond issue in 20 years. Restaurants, hotels, groceries and prescription drugs would be exempt from the one-cent sales tax.

More than half of the $55 million would be dedicated to potential matching funds for an estimated $125 million multimodal port on the Mississippi River he calls a “game changer” for our community.

“If we build that port, that’s 500 jobs,” Flaggs told a crowd gathered Thursday night at city hall. “If we do that, that’s the biggest game changer since the Civil War in Vicksburg, Mississippi.”

The remaining money would be used on expanding broadband capabilities, public works, public safety, street paving, tourism and an art museum.

“It’s one penny; now who can’t lose one penny?” Flaggs said. “It’s the best investment you can invest in with one cent.”

We agree with the Mayor that such an investment could bring the jobs our community needs. A port of this magnitude would benefit both the Nissan and Continental Tire facilities that are an hour’s drive away for shipping their products rather than the 150 miles to the Coast.

This bond would also create improvements that have been needed for years in our city.

The Mayor calls this a “game changer,” while we call this a “difference maker” for our community if we want our economy to grow and prosper.